


Tooth and Claw

by youbuggme



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Urban Fantasy, Dragons, M/M, Mystery, R plus L equals J, Vampires, Werewolves
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-22
Updated: 2016-08-12
Packaged: 2018-07-16 15:40:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,866
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7273978
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/youbuggme/pseuds/youbuggme
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <em>To the untrained eye, he looked like an ordinary guy. Neat black hair, dark shadowy eyes and thin pink lips- handsome, in Robb’s opinion, but nothing out of the ordinary to normal folks which filled the majority of the dive bar. Even to Robb’s trained eyes, he couldn’t tell right off the bat. No, if he were relying solely on looks, Robb wouldn’t have noticed anything peculiar about the stranger beside him. However, it was the smell that clued Robb in.</em>
</p>
<p>Tumblr Request: Vampire!Theon and Werewolf!Robb</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Howl You Doin'?

**Author's Note:**

> Never thought I'd be into a story like this....then 10,000 words later and here I am.

Robb knew in a second something was off about the man sitting beside him.

To the untrained eye, he looked like an ordinary guy. Neat black hair, dark shadowy eyes and thin pink lips- _handsome_ , in Robb’s opinion, but nothing out of the ordinary to normal folks which filled the majority of the dive bar. Even to Robb’s trained eyes, he couldn’t tell right off the bat. No, if he were relying solely on looks, Robb wouldn’t have noticed anything peculiar about the stranger beside him. However, it was the smell that clued Robb in.

Most people smelt of warmth, color, _life_ but the man on the stool beside him smelt of cold, black death. The warmth of his flesh was gone; leaving him stone cold like chilled marble and Robb knew in an instant what he was.

He swallowed roughly when the man met his eyes. For a dead man, his eyes lit up in amusement as he sent Robb a closed mouth smile. If only he could catch a glimpse of what was behind those lips, then Robb would have the visual evidence he needed. However, the prickling of his skin and the scent of death really should have been enough.

Judging by the way the man’s lips quirked up mockingly as he racked his eyes over Robb, he knew that Robb wasn’t quite ordinary either. His eyes seemed to glow as they locked onto Robb’s neck, trailing down his chest to his hips and crotch- smirking pleased- before coming back up to Robb’s face. He winked and Robb fought a blush. Carnal desire swirled dangerously in his gut but Robb pushed it out of mind. This was _not_ the time to be thinking of a fresh new hook up.

Still, the man said nothing, simply motioning for another drink from the bartender then surprising Robb by directing one for him as well.

As their drinks came, the man with dead eyes but a lively smile raised his glass to Robb in a silent “cheers”. He waited patiently for Robb to hesitantly lift his own glass before tossing his head back and downing the dark liquid. Robb’s eyes instantly locked onto the stranger’s pale column neck as want clawed at his chest, begging to be free.

The stranger smirked again, flashing teeth for a second but long enough for Robb to see the sharp fangs, and Robb realized the throw back of the head had been a taunt, confirming that he knew what Robb was just like Robb knew what he was.

Then, before Robb could even open his mouth, the man slipped off his stool and pulled out a couple of bills, anchoring them with the empty glass.

He was out of the dive bar before Robb could even commit his face to memory but the scent of decay lingered.

* * *

“Please tell me you are joking,” Jon hissed quietly into the night, his dark eyes glaring at Robb.

Robb shrugged innocently, his eyes up at the sky, locked on the half moon. A few hours had passed since Robb’s meeting with the stranger in the bar and he was home now. The second he got there, he showered, hoping that his pack wouldn’t smell the man on him. Even if they didn’t touch, all werewolves were hypersensitive to new smells, especially smells like _that_. It was part of the reason Robb had noticed him to begin with. Not many out there could carry death so well.

After his shower, Robb dragged his cousin to the backyard to get his opinion on what Robb should do. While Jon wasn’t a part of the pack, he still had enough pack-mentality drilled into his head to give a decent opinion. It was the best Robb could do without spilling his encounter to the entire pack.

Jon sighed nosily. “If your father finds out-”

“Then he won’t,” Robb cut Jon off quickly, glancing back toward the house anxiously. Thankfully, they were still alone, his brothers and sisters out of hearing range. “I could have been wrong.”

“Robb,” Jon deadpanned, “I think you can tell the difference between someone who is alive and someone who is dead.”

“I’ve never met one before!” Robb yelped loudly before catching himself and lowering his voice, “We didn’t even say anything to each other. He bought me a drink and he was out a second later. We didn’t touch or _anything_.”

“Please tell me you didn’t drink it,” Jon asked in dread.

“He didn’t drug me if that’s what you’re thinking,” Robb rolled his eyes, leaning back on his hands and stretching his legs out. The grass was cool, a bit dewy, but carrying the comforting scent of moist earth and home. “I would have smelt it.”

Jon sneered, “No, but their kind deal with all that language crap. How do you know you didn’t accept some weird deal without even knowing it? What if the drink came with conditions or some shit? They are crafty fuckers.” Trust Jon to be the cautious one, then again all dragons were.

“We didn’t speak,” Robb reminded his cousin dully.

“No, but nonverbal communication is still a thing.” Jon groaned, “A fucking vampire? In _Winterfell_? Gods be good.”

“Like I said, no one has to know.”

“You’re just going to hide it from the pack?” Jon raised his eyebrows incredulous. Jon wasn’t even a part of the pack and he knew that you just didn’t keep secrets from your pack, your _family_.

“I’m not hiding anything. We don’t know for sure and if we say something, the others might freak out a bit.”

“A bit?” Jon huffed; Robb could already feel the heat coming from his brother.

Jon’s mother may have been a werewolf like the rest of the Starks, but it was his father’s dragonian genetics that had taken dominance. The only reason he was allowed a place here in the first place was because they were family by blood. If it had been up to Robb’s mother, she would have sent him away (sometimes still tried). Wolves and dragons were polar opposite creatures and didn’t mesh well together. They were ice and fire. Jon couldn’t even live with the other side of his family (not that there were many of them left) because dragons killed anything that wasn’t pure, especially if it had been tainted with wolf’s blood. Pack mentality is the only reason Jon had a home with the Starks, _thank the gods._

“He might have even just been passing through,” Robb said hopefully.

He wasn’t exactly sure what the protocol was, but he wasn’t thrilled with the idea of a territory war. Werewolves had held the North for hundreds of years, packs forming strongholds from the Riverlands to the Wall. They held the largest land out of all the other kingdoms and other mystic creatures combine, but also the coldest and harshest of regions. Of course, as time changed, those strongholds became countries and towns, Winterfell just a small dot on the map. However, a vampire…not many came passing through the North, especially if they wanted to live to tell the tale.

While wolves and dragons fought viciously, they were a respect held among them. Vampires, on the other hand, held no respect, not from werewolves, not from dragons, not from anyone. Every other creature, from the Griffins of the Vale and the witches and warlocks of the West, held an understanding for one another because they all contained life. Vampires did not, raiding lands with death and destruction.

“Let’s hope for everyone’s sake, he is already gone.”

* * *

Two weeks later, Robb found himself sitting at the same dive bar on the same stool at the exact same time as before. With the minor exception of the full moon five days prior, Robb was at the bar every night. It was silly, he knew, to wait out on the stranger, especially if he was right about him. Werewolves and vampires didn’t mix well, never had, so why Robb sat himself there, waiting, he didn’t know. Curiosity, if he had to guess.

He had never met a vampire before, the closest thing to it would be Roose Bolton, but that was just a crude joke amongst the pups from various packs in the North.

It was beginning to turn into another lonely night as the time trickled by. He wasn’t coming. If he were smart, the vampire would have left town already. While only the Starks lived in Winterfell, the neighboring towns with the other packs were close enough to call on. It was dangerous to be stepping into the city limits to begin with, lingering was a death sentence. Still, for some reason, Robb hoped.

As he was digging for his wallet to pay his tab, the bar doors opened and crisp autumn air rushed in. Death clung to the scent of dried leaves and Robb snapped his head up to meet the soulless black eyes.

The vampire smirked close mouth but Robb knew what was behind those lips. Robb pocketed his wallet once more as the vampire took his seat beside Robb. He waved a hand to the bartender for attention before sweeping his gaze at Robb.

Robb had heard the tales from Old Nan. Vampires were a classic tale and even more so for werewolf children. They were opposites of carnage: Life vs. Death. Werewolves brought luck, vampires brought despair.

However, Old Nan’s tales were wrong. The man before him didn’t have death in his eyes, although Robb wouldn’t call it life. The stranger wasn’t stoic or haunting; he seemed like a regular person if Robb didn’t smell the death that clung to his skin. Old Nan’s tales of vampires made them seem like monsters but Robb couldn’t see the difference between the two of them.

Robb watched as the bartender came over and the vampire slid forward on his stool and purred his order in a silky voice. It pulled at Robb’s skin, urging him to go over to the vampire but he stayed put.

Werewolves only came around once in a full moon, unless they chose to emerge otherwise. Most didn’t. Vampires on the other hand were always just that. They couldn’t survive on other sources of food like werewolves. They were only allowed the blood of the living. That’s why their voices were so smooth and alluring. As Jon said, they dealt with language, convincing their prey to come to them where as werewolves hunted them down.

The stranger waited until his drink was brought in front of him to turn fully to Robb. As he had done the other night, his eyes traveled down Robb’s body before meeting his eyes.

“My name’s Theon,” he introduced, his voice doing funny things to Robb’s head but he shook those thoughts away before the vampire could hook his claws in.

“Robb.”

Theon looked amused, his lips quirked up again with a flash of teeth. “Tell me, _Robb_ ,” he seemed to take great pleasure in saying Robb’s name as Robb scrambled to remember if it was vampires or some other creature that controlled people via names, “does your pack know I’m here?”

Jon technically wasn’t a part of the pack so it wasn’t a lie when Robb answered, “No.”

The vampire seemed surprised in hearing this, eyes widening a fraction. “Really?”

“Do I need to?” Robb countered swiftly, both eyebrows raised in inquiry. There was the underlying question of _are you going to be a problem?_

The vampire’s eyes flashed as he grinned, teeth exposed so Robb could clearly see the sharp fangs. “Not unless you want to be interrupted,” Theon purred, his voice wrapping around Robb’s head like a drug.

Robb blinked, trying to reel his thoughts away from what his body wanted him to do. Was he being _propositioned_ right now? Theon gave him another leer and _oh gods_ yeah, he was. Robb cocked his head to the side in questioning and Theon responded with a shrug, his eyes darting to the back of the bar where the bathrooms were.

Common sense _screamed_ for Robb to say no, to leave and go home, to _tell the fucking pack_ , but desire was pooling dangerously in his gut and had been since the vampire had come inside the shitty dive bar the first night. The vampire sensed his apprehension and drifted closer, still not touching but leaving little room for movement. He must have known his scent would cling to Robb so he approached with _some_ caution.

“Don’t worry,” Theon cooed in Robb’s ear hotly, his breath teasing. If there had been doubts on if vampires could charm with their words, there weren’t any now. Robb found himself leaning closer, unable to stop himself. “I don’t bite.”

Robb actually snorted at that line, eyes fluttering up to meet the vampires, and Theon seemed more delighted by that than discouraged. Slowly and with measured movements, Theon slid off the bar stool and sashayed to the bathroom, his hips swaying and Robb found he couldn’t take his eyes off them.

With the vampire out of sight, Robb considered the option to run, leave and go back home, to his pack and ignore the temptation only feet away. Instead, he founded himself locking the single stall bathroom behind him before the vampire had him pressed against the door.

Soft lips pressed insistently against his as a tongue invaded his mouth. Two cold hands clung to him, one in his hair and the other one his chest. Robb’s own hands gripped the vampire by the hips and brought him forward, leaving no room between them.

From there Robb was lost in flurry of grinding hips and exploratory hands. Primal instinct and desire took over as a growl ripped through Robb’s throat, his hands underneath Theon’s clothing, desperate to touch anything that he could, skimming over a smooth stomach, hard chest, soft flesh. With clever fingers, Theon popped the button of Robb’s jeans open and his hand brushed against Robb’s hardening length. Robb barely even notice, too caught up in the moment, too fueled by desire and the need and want for more. That is until he was ripped away with a sharp pain on his bottom lip.

Robb snapped his head away in a sharp moment, Theon’s dark eyes glowing as they watched him. Robb could feel blood trickle into his mouth, the cut wasn’t very big but it was still there, enough for Robb to stop where this was going immediately. He could see dotting of his blood on the vampire’s lips as Theon’s tongue darted out to collect it. Theon closed his eyes, savoring the taste.

Drinking the blood of another person, whether they were normal, werewolves, gorgons or naiads was an intimate act that only ended in a handful of ways: death, emergence, or possession. Robb wasn’t going to be on the books for any of those, not with this stranger, this _vampire_. Desire still coursed through his blood like wild fire but Robb needed to make the distinction clear, that what they were doing would not end with any of those three acts.

Ducking his head, Robb nuzzled at Theon’s throat and let his teeth scrap against the cold skin. Just like drinking blood resulted in intimacy for vampires, neck biting was the equivalent for werewolves. While a harsh bite and tear would bring death, a bite of power and mating brought on possession and in some cases, emergence. It was a known fact. Robb had barely finished the movement before Theon ripped himself away, a foot of space between them.

“I thought you didn’t bite,” Robb reminded, his voice weighted in desire despite his warning to Theon.

“Point taken,” Theon nodded, conveying the underlying understanding- no biting, no marking, no possession, no mating. Just sex. Robb smirked.

This time Robb crowded Theon to the other side of the bathroom, his mouth licking into Theon’s as he hitched his leg between his thighs, rocking against him. Theon wasted no time and resuming his position from earlier, one hand tangled in Robb’s hair and the other hand slithering into his pants.

* * *

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Jon hissed as he met Robb outside the house.

It was nearly two in the morning when Robb had left the dive bar feeling sated and content. As he neared his home, he knew that the smell of death followed him and he couldn’t risk going back into his home with that scent. If his pack found out what he had been up to, there would be a hunt and his father would have Robb’s hide. He had texted Jon to come and make sure the coast was clear so he could wash away the scent before any one was the wiser.

Even if Jon’s genetics classified him as a dragon, he still had many qualities of a werewolf- pack mentality, hypersensitive hearing and, unfortunately, hypersensitive smell.

“Is it that bad?” Robb winced upon seeing Jon’s grimace. He couldn’t really smell it anymore, too used to the scent after the hour he had spent with Theon in such close quarters.

“What’d you do, fuck him?” Jon jested but froze upon seeing his cousin’s look. “Are you fucking serious?”

“It just kind of happened,” Robb snapped back, not wanted to explain what spurred him to do so. Despite not giving Theon a bite, there was still a possessiveness in Robb’s defense of the situation. “Look, I didn’t go there looking for trouble.” _But he had_. “It won’t happen again.” _Maybe_.

“It better not, for your sake.” Jon looked tired. “I’ll check to see if everyone is asleep but you got to get the scent off you. You reek.”

Robb rolled his eyes. “It’s not that bad.”

Jon looked like he had just been slapped. “Do you hear yourself? Please tell me you didn’t mark him-”

“No!” Robb snarled. “It was just a one-time thing.”

Jon didn’t look relieved or relaxed, his shoulders still high strung and tense. “Did he bite you?”

Robb licked his bottom lip. He could taste of the warm, coppery cut swelling on his lip. He wouldn’t classify it as a bite though. “No, neither of us was looking for that.”

“I should hope not,” Jon growled. “Come on; let’s go back inside before someone finds out.”

“Thanks, Jon,” Robb muttered, following behind.

 Jon smirked, “You’ll owe me.”

Robb grinned back. “Figured that’d be the case. Still seeing that human girl?” Robb wasn’t the only one keeping secrets from the family.

Jon flushed bright red, the heat almost palpable in the night air. “Shut up.”

* * *

Robb had been floating on a high since then. It was the thrill of having a secret from the pack and the relief of letting those desires out. It had been a long time since he had been with someone _and_ it was the first time he had been with someone who knew what he was. It was freeing, in a way.

Well, it _had_ been freeing until they had a council.

Werewolves hailed from the North and many packs lived around. The Starks were one of the originals but there were many others that had come and gone during the long history. Now only a few remained and every couple of months they met, usually for specific reasons and crises. These events were always long and tiring but significant. Having all the packs of the North meet in one location usually meant something of great importance was going on.

Robb watched as they all assembled in the vast dining room of the Stark house. Around the table were the alphas of each pack: His father, Roose Bolton, Howland Reed, Rickard Karstark, Jon Umber and Maege Mormont. A few others were permitted in on these meetings like Robb, Dacey Mormont, Jon Umber’s boy, the three Karstark boys and Roose Bolton’s bastard. Both Howland Reed’s children were too young, often found playing in the back with Bran and Rickon, however when they were older they too would sit in on these councils.

His father, the host and therefore leader of this meeting, was the first to speak, “You all know why you’ve been called. Something has been moving through our towns and I fear that it has only just begun.”

“Four murders so far in my town,” Howland Reed shook his head in disgust. “All within a month.”

“Only four?” Maege Mormont cocked an eyebrow. “We had seven.”

“Six,” Karstark grunted.

“Five,” Umber spoke slowly.

“Twelve,” Roose said, almost proud that he had racked up the most. His bastard smirked from behind his father and Robb almost wanted to question if those twelve deaths had truly been at the hands of whatever creature was riding through.

His father sighed loudly and Robb glanced up. “We’ve had two so far but I don’t think it’ll end there. It’s still early.”

“We all know what it is,” Rickard Karstark leaned heavily on the table. “Why don’t we all just hunt for it? End this nice and quick?”

“We don’t know if it is that,” Howland Reed spoke swiftly. He didn’t have a great pack like the others, only his two children with him. He didn’t want to subject them into a hunt, especially like the type of hunt Rickard Karstark was suggesting.

“What else could it be?” Umber’s slammed the table. “It’s a fucking vampire and it’s going to keep killing until we kill it.”

Robb’s eyes flashed up at Jon Umber as realization hit him like a bullet. _Fuck_.

“How do we know it is one?” Roose brought up. “What if it is a coven?”

“We need to find them and take care of them, no matter how many,” Rickard Karstark snarled, his canines glistening. “There is your territory Stark so the decision is up to you, but wait too long and we’ll lose them.”

“They’re a strange lot, huh?” Maege Mormont frowned. “I mean, which way are they heading? East, west, north, south?”

“You’re right,” Howland Reed pursed his lips. “They’re not traveling in a detectable direction.”

“More like a circle,” Robb muttered as he considered where the other packs were located. Winterfell was in the center of all the other towns the attacks had taken place in.

“You’re boy’s right,” Roose flashed his eyes from Robb to his father. “I’m thinking they are less of drifters and more of-”

“Or someone,” Umber added.

“We’ll need to keep the children protected,” Ned sighed. “The last thing we need is getting them involved and more blood to be spilled.”

“What about your half-breed nephew?” Karstark sneered in disgust.

“Jon won’t be a problem,” Ned reassured, not bothering to correct the other pack leader’s language. “Let’s focus on figuring out who these people-”

“Vampires,” Bolton corrected.

“-who these _vampires_ are and how many we are dealing with. Perhaps there is a way to settle this amicably.”

This garnered a dark chuckle from the other alphas. “Since when have you known our kind and their kind to break bread?” Maege asked jokingly.

“Let’s just save the blood shed until we are certain.”


	2. Pain In The Neck

As the other packs begun to leave the house, mingling and talking idly, Robb took the opportunity to slip outside to the backyard undetected. Over the vast expanse of the dark backyard right before the dark forest began to meet manicured lawn, Robb could see Jon lying back in the grass, his silhouette outlined in the moonlight. Robb approached silently, but Jon sensed him and turned his head to the side. In the darkness, Jon’s dark eyes flickered like flames.

“Is it over? They all gone yet?”

Robb settled beside his cousin, knees tucked to his chest as he looked up at the sky. “For now. Most of them are hanging around town until we get this resolved.”

Jon propped himself up on his elbows. “Did you tell them?” Robb didn’t say anything but his silence was admission. “Are you fucking serious?”

“Karstark wants to hunt them down,” Robb murmured. They both know how a hunt like that ended. “We don’t even know if _he_ was involved.”

Jon shook his head, sitting up all the way. “Don’t be an idiot, Robb. A vampire shows up and suddenly there are murders? You don’t think he is involved?”

“It could be something else,” Robb countered, eyes locking with Jon. “I didn’t want to say anything before we know the truth.”

Jon looked exasperated. “The truth? Come on, it is right in front of you! He shows up, is a vampire, people die, can it be spelled out any clearer?” Jon shook his head before pausing, eyebrows furrowed. “Wait, before _we_ know the truth?”

Robb sheepishly scratched the back of his head. “Only if you want.”

“Well, I don’t.” Jon pulled his shoulders back. “I don’t need to give the pack another reason to distrust me and associating with a vampire will get my ass kicked out of Winterfell, probably the whole North.”

“I just need to talk to him,” Robb sighed, running his fingers through his hair. “Maybe he’ll explain. Maybe he knows something and can help.”

“Yeah, something along the lines of ‘I was hungry,’” Jon sneered. “Look, you see the best in people, which is great, but I think this situation is pretty black and white.”

Robb scrubbed at his face. “Just give me one more night to talk to him. Prove me wrong and I’ll go straight to father, tell the whole pack.”

Jon looked dubious, but slowly nodded his head. “Just be careful.”

Robb’s lips twitched up. “I’ll bring my garlic.” Jon let out a long sigh through his nose but Robb could see the small smile graze his lips. “Or, you can just come with me.”

Jon’s eyes flashed up. “And meet the guy? Hell no.”

Robb turned and grasped Jon by the shoulders. “You’ll be my back-up! What if you’re right, what if he is dangerous.” Yeah, it might be a bit of a dick move, but Robb knew how to play to Jon’s worries.

“Fine,” Jon spat out through clenched teeth. “But after that, we tell Ned, one way or another. I’m not going behind his back after all he has done for me when he didn’t have to.”

“Alright,” Robb nodded his head eagerly. “It’s a deal.”

Robb held out his hand and Jon’s eyebrows shot up. While vampires dealt with linguistic deals and werewolves specialized in pack order, dragons had vows. Never make a deal with a dragon unless you were going to see it through, even if the dragon was a fledgling like Jon. If you go back on a vow, you were faced with the rage of the dragon- usually ending with death by fire.

“Fuck, Robb, we don’t need to make this a vow. Just take my word for it.” Jon was weary of vows and refused to do them. Probably for good reason, but Robb wanted to show that he was serious.

Robb dropped his hand but even without the formality of a proper vow the underline promise was there. They were going to do this and find out the truth.

* * *

They went the next evening, unable to push this off too far. They needed answers quick before the council would act and begin their hunt. As they pulled up to the dive bar, Jon raised an eyebrow and scrunched his nose.

“No wonder you ran into him. This place is…” Jon drifted off.

“Under the radar of the pack,” Robb finished coolly. “The last thing I need is for Sansa or Arya to come snooping around and they’d never check here.”

Jon shook his head in dismay as they both climbed out of the car. Robb immediately took a deep breath in but there was no sign of the vampire. Dread filled his stomach as Robb wondered _if_ he would even show up again. It took two weeks for Robb to run into him twice and he wasn’t sure they had the luxury to do that again.

Stepping into the dive bar, Robb brought Jon over to the bar and sunk onto the stools. They ordered their drinks but barely touched them as they waited in silence. Both were tense, Robb wondering if he would even see Theon, The Vampire, again and Jon worried about the pack finding out.

It took two hours for him to show up, Robb recognizing the smell as the door opened. Robb turned quickly on his stool to see Theon standing at the door way, his eyes locked on Jon rather than Robb. Then he remembered.

While vampires’ sense of smell wasn’t anywhere close to werewolves, they still could tell the difference between humans and non-humans and while the rivalry of werewolves and vampires were legendary, dragons were also notorious for having major conflicts with vampires. Not for any other reason than that dragons had a major affinity for fire and one of the few ways you could kill a vampire was through fire. Then again, you’d be hard pressed to find _any_ other creature that molded well with dragons _or_ vampires.

Robb stood up from the bar stool and nodded his head toward the back booth. Theon considered his options before slinking off toward the back. Jon looked between Robb and Theon unimpressed.

“That’s the guy?” Jon asked in disbelief, looking past Robb to catch another glimpse. “I thought he’d be more…”

“More what?”

“Menacing,” Jon frowned, clearly not happy with the word choice but seeming lost in finding the appropriate one. “I was expecting something different.”

“Come on,” Robb nudged his cousin before they both took a seat across from Theon in the booth. It was in the far back corner of the bar, away from prying eyes and curious ears.

Theon’s eyes were locked on Jon, his back straight with apprehension. Jon was a near reflection of Theon and Robb had to break the tension.

“Jon’s not going to do anything to you.” Robb spoke slowly, kicking Jon under the table for him to ease off. “We just wanted to talk.”

Theon’s eyes flashed over to Robb, his lips curling up in a threatening snarl. “Talk?”

Like werewolves were protective of the pack, dragons were protective of their flight. Since Jon was a nice, unconventional mix of both, Robb wasn’t even surprised when he surged over the table, grabbing Theon by the collar of his shirt with flashing eyes and bared teeth.

“I’d back off,” Jon warned as Robb pushed him back into the booth, releasing his fingers from Theon’s shirt.

Theon cocked an eyebrow at Jon, smirk set into a dangerous mask. “Little hot blooded, aren’t we?”

“Enough,” Robb warned both of them. “We aren’t here to start a war.”

“Don’t speak so soon,” Jon snapped, his eyes glaring holes at Theon.

“Look,” Robb set his eyes on Theon, “we need to know if you are here alone or if you a part of a coven.” Straight forward and honest, then they would get to the truth and Robb could separate them.

Theon tilted his head to the side, surveying Robb with interested. When his lips twitched up, Jon growled low in his throat. “Why?”

“We need to know if it’s just you murdering people or if there is a whole lot of you,” Jon hissed.

Theon tore his eyes away from Robb and stared at Jon in a mixture of confusion and a bit of fear. His eyes were wide and open and his shoulders even more tense than before. “Excuse me?”

Jon was too pent up to see it, but Robb knew in an instant Theon had nothing to do with the deaths. “Something has been coming through the area. There have been thirty seven deaths in the past four months, all of the same style.”

Theon looked near shell-shocked, eyes focused on the wood of the table rather than the pair before him. “Thirty seven?”

“For now,” Robb spoke softly. “We think there will be more.”

“We also think it was a vampire, or a coven of them,” Jon rumbled. “And, well, you _are_ here.”

Theon snapped his head up. “You think I did it?”

“Wouldn’t be that out of the ordinary for your kind,” Jon sneered, still baring his teeth hostilely. 

Theon’s face contorted into a nasty smirk. “Can’t the same be said for your kind?”

“Jon didn’t do it,” Robb cut through quickly before they could be at each other’s throats again. “Even if you didn’t do it, we thought maybe you would know who.”

“Maybe someone from your coven.” Jon settled back into the booth, arms still crossed tightly over his chest.

Theon shook his head. “’Not exactly a part of one, I was just passing through.” It wasn’t unheard of for vampires of travel alone. Actually, covens were kind of a more outdated concept.

Robb and Jon glanced at each other before focusing back on Theon. “Where were you before you came through here?”

Theon licked his lips nervously. “Before here? Karhold, I think. I move around a lot, don’t stay in one place for too long.”

Robb blinked and put a hand on Jon’s shoulder to stop him from spouting off. “Why do you move around a lot?”

“That’s personal,” Theon snapped, although it didn’t pack as much heat as when directed at Jon.

“Is it because someone is following you?” Jon asked, picking up where Robb was going with this.

Theon stiffened again. “One of the deaths was in Karhold?”

“Six,” Robb recited. “Who’s following you?”

Theon shook his head, sliding out of the booth. “Doesn’t matter. I’ll leave and they’ll follow and it’ll all be good.”

Jon and Robb watched as he slinked out of the bar. Running on instinct, Robb climbed over Jon and followed Theon out, grabbing him by the back of his jacket and reeling him back.

They struggled, Theon pulling out of Robb’s grasp and Robb finding new places to latch on to before he had Theon pinned against the wall.

“You can’t leave.”

“Why?” Theon grinned but it wasn’t kind. “Want another fuck before I go?”

Robb ignored the comment. “If you leave, the packs are just going to follow. If you run, they are going to think you are guilty.”

Theon glared at Robb but it faltered as he realized his options. “If I stay, there are just going to be more. That is _if_ you are correct in thinking I’m involved- who knows, pretty boy, might be wrong.”

“Let’s find out, you can help us,” Robb insisted. The door to the bar opened and Robb turned to see Jon waiting patiently, close enough to come if there was a problem but far enough away to give the allusion of privacy. Turning back, Robb dropped his voice so Jon wouldn’t hear. “I won’t let anything happen to you.”

Theon smirked. “Even without a bite you still got all possessive, huh? Cute.”

Robb felt heat come to his face. “It’s call doing the right thing and you didn’t do this.”

“Not a big fan of the whole ‘bleed ‘em dry’ technique.”

Robb rolled his eyes. “Stay low and we’ll meet up again.”

“Back here or…” Theon let his sentence drift off as Robb dug into his pocket and pulled of his cellphone. “Ooh, your direct line. I must be special.”

“Are you always this much of an asshole to someone looking out for you?” Robb hissed. Theon took the phone from his hands and pushed Robb back. It was then Robb realized he had Theon pressed against the wall chest to chest.

“I don’t need someone looking out for me,” Theon grunted but typed in a number into Robb’s phone.

Robb wasn’t convinced but took his phone back. “Just lay low. A couple of neighboring packs are in town and if they catch your scent, this’ll all be over and Jon and I won’t be able to do anything about it.”

Theon rolled his eyes. “Your wish is my command.”

Robb watched as Theon walked off, passing by Jon where they exchanged low guttural snarls. Robb approached Jon, his eyes still glued on Theon until he was absorbed into the night.

“Do you believe him?” Jon asked quietly.

Robb nodded his head. “Do you?”

Jon sighed. “Unfortunately.”

“Are we going to tell the pack?” Robb asked. If it were up to him, he wouldn’t yet but he wasn’t going to force Jon one way or another. In the end, Jon had to also worry about his own skin.

It looked like it pained him but Jon shook his head. “We don’t know enough yet. They’ll just hunt him down for the sake of immediate vengeance then actual justice.”

* * *

Neither of them spoke on the drive home, the scent of death hung over both of them. They were going to need to find a better way of hiding the scent from the rest of the pack. If they continued like this they were going to get caught. Especially now that both of them were involved.

As they turned off the main road and began heading home, both their eyes landed on a bright light at the end of the street.

“What the hell is that?” Robb asked, but even though the windows were closed, Robb could still smell the thick smoke.

“Fire,” Jon’s brows furrowed. “You don’t think…”

“Theon? I mean, I’m sure he is quick but not that quick,” Robb muttered. “What the hell is going on?”

“I don’t know,” Jon murmured, pulling over and climbing out of the car.

“Maybe it was just an accidental fire,” Robb tried but neither of them were convinced.

A low-rise apartment building was on fire, mostly concentrated on the upper floors but spreading quickly. People were still evacuating the building and small groups were gathered to watch. A fire truck and a few squad cars were already at the scene, the ambulance sounding in the distance.

While back in its founding, Winterfell was one of the largest towns in the North. It hadn’t really grown in size throughout the years and was now just a tiny town with a few main roads and a couple of walking squares. It was quant, but home. That being said, it was easy to run into a familiar face, especially with some many gathered around.

“Jon?” a female voice called out from behind them.

Jon froze and Robb’s eyes landed on a red haired woman with sharp eyes. She was human, as far as Robb could tell. One look at Jon and Robb knew it was the girl he had been meeting with in secret.

“Ygritte,” Jon spoke low, his eyes darting between her and the fire behind them. “That wasn’t your-”

“No,” she shook her head quickly, hair flying outwards. “I live a block down.” Her eyes landed on Robb. “Is that your cousin?”

“Robb,” Robb introduced, holding out his hand.

They shook hands as the paramedics came. Firefighters raced in and out and around the building, unfurling their hoses.

“What are you two doing here?” Ygritte whispered to Jon, but Robb’s ears picked it up.

“We were on our way home and saw the fire.” Jon’s eyes were still locked on the flames.

When Jon first began to emerge at age six, he had been unable to control the inner fires that resided in his chest. By the time they were both twelve, Robb had gotten good at putting out fires and noticing when Jon’s inner flames were unchecked. High-stress situations were usually a key factor for control loss.

“Deep breathes,” Robb reminded lowly. The last thing they needed was for Jon to lose control in a crowd.

Jon nodded his head. “I wonder what started it.”

“Someone probably left their stove on,” Ygritte commented. Robb ignored how their hands intertwined. The less visual evidence he had, the more deniability he had should Jon ever get caught by the pack. Jon had said a similar thing on the drive to the dive bar. “It was just an accident, I’m sure.”

Jon nodded his head and Robb began to step toward the perimeter to get a closer look. He reached the police tape, squeezing between to on-lookers. There were a few people standing around with minor burns on their arms, the paramedics treating them on sight. One man was in a stretcher, being loaded into the ambulance. Robb’s eyes, however, were locked on the two bodies covered with black tarps.

“-fifteen injured, only one with severe burns and two dead so far,” one of the police officers told one of the firefighters. Robb focused his attention to the two. “Any idea how this thing started?”

The firefighter shook his head. “Not yet, but it looks like it started on the third floor. Started in unit 309 and spread to the others.”

“Accident?”

The firefighter grimaced, “Unclear yet.”

Robb continued to watch the emergency service men work, catching bits of their conversations here and there but with little new information. The two deceased were inhabitants of unit 309 and 308. One was crushed by falling debris; the other was burned to death. No ID on the bodies yet, the damage on both of them too much to make an educated guess.

Robb was about the leave, the burning building and flesh making him dizzy, when one of the firefighters called out to their chief. Robb hung back, watching from the corner of his eyes as he held up a charred object Robb couldn’t identify.

“Found what started it,” the firefighter exclaimed, holding up the object for inspection.

The chief narrowed his eyes, looking at it from all angles. “What the hell is that?”

“No idea, sir.” The firefighter produced a bag and sealed it inside. “’Never seen nothin’ like it.”

“I doubt this was an accident,” the chief sighed tiredly. “Like we don’t have enough to worry about.”

“You think it was connected to those murders?” the firefighter asked.

“No way to say yet,” the chief responded diplomatically before ducking his head low, “but I’d put my money on it.”

Robb would too.

Robb retreated back to Jon and Ygritte, the information he collected swirling in his head. First someone was going around the north, killing and apparently following Theon and now death by fire. It wasn’t adding up but Robb had no doubt in his mind that they were from the same source.

“Ready?” Robb asked. They needed to get back to the pack soon before any attention was brought on them.

“Ygritte offered her place for us to shower.” Jon gave Robb a knowing look.

“Yeah,” Ygritte shrugged off, “I live over there,” she pointed out the building.

Robb nodded his head, turning to look at the building. The flames had died down but smoke still wafted into the sky. “Let’s go.”

* * *

“Do you need anything?” Ygritte asked as Robb settled on her couch. He had just finished his shower and Jon had just begun his.

“No,” Robb shook his head politely. “I actually need to make a phone call, mind if I step outside?”

“Knock yourself out,” Ygritte shrugged off.

Robb slipped out of the apartment, already dialing his phone.

 _“What, miss me already?”_ Theon picked up. Robb could imagine his curled smirk over sharp teeth.

“There was a fire in town today, two dead.”

 _“You should keep a better eye on your brother,”_ Theon remarked unsurprised.

Robb felt a snarl coming on but bit it down. “Anything like that happen in those other towns you visited?”

 _“Look,”_ he sounded drained, _“I didn’t even know about the deaths.”_

“Do you know anything?” Robb snapped, rubbing his face from the agitation.

_“About the fire and the murders? No.”_

“What about the person following you?”

 _“Not sure those are related,”_ Theon sighed over the line. _“Like I said, it is personal.”_

“You hit up every one of those towns and you’re telling me that it has nothing to do with you?” Robb growled, his throat vibrating slightly.

 _“I didn’t say that,”_ Theon hissed back. _“I’m just saying I don’t think it is the person following me. They aren’t exactly the carnal killing type…at least the type to leave a trace.”_

Robb blinked. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

 _“Let’s not do this over the phone,”_ Theon murmured lowly. _“Call again in a few days and we’ll meet up.”_

“Why not tomorrow?” Robb was frustrated that Theon didn’t seem to understand the importance of this.

 _“Got to find something to eat,”_ Theon said swiftly. _“Unless you’re offering.”_ His voice was set in a purr that triggered Robb’s gut to stir in a not entirely unpleasant way.

Robb bristled. “How are you planning to go about it?”

_“Like I told you, I feed in moderation. For the record, I don’t need to kill someone to satisfy my hunger. Sometimes it is just easier though.”_

Oh. Well, “Just call me when you can meet again, and soon.”

 _“I knew you missed me,”_ Theon chuckled and Robb found he rather liked the sound. He actually just liked any sound Theon made but that wasn’t the point. _“Good luck with your fire situation.”_ There was a pause on the line as Theon sucked in a breath. _“Not that my opinion matters, but you ever think the fire had anything to do with the dragon?”_

“I told you Jon had nothing to do with it,” Robb snarled, quick to defend.

 _“Not what I was implying,”_ Theon muttered distantly. _“Just something to think about.”_


	3. Blood Is Thicker Than Water

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SORRY FOR THE MONTH LONG ABSENCE WITH THIS STORY. ^.^ Please forgive me! (also, enjoy!)

News of the fire made it to the rest of the packs before Robb and Jon had even returned home. Of course, the minute they pulled up, his father had taken Jon aside to talk and subtly sniffing to see if Jon carried any smoke on him. Well, any more smoke than normal; Jon actually ended up picking up smoking cigarettes in order to have an explanation for the smokey scent he carried that even _normals_ could smell.

Robb knew he would be spoken to next, which turned out to be just a confirmation that Jon had been with Robb the whole time and hadn’t started any fires. His father also breathed in Robb’s scent to make sure that was he was being told was the truth.

“It’s not that I don’t trust him,” his father had explained after Robb got angry at the line of questioning, “but I have the other packs on my back. It would be negligent not to ask. It’s politics.” Robb knew just as well as everyone how much his father _hated_ pack politics.

After that, the fire went away. None of their own was attacked and most of the alphas were brushing it off as an accident despite conflicting reports. Most of the pack leaders were focused on the murders and wanted vengeance thinly veiled as justice, Karstark growing more anxious and pressing for a hunt and Reed’s defense against it weakening. None of the packs would out rightly act without Ned’s consent, this was his territory, but a few were making it clear that if things were going to continue the way they were, they wouldn’t be able to control their packs. If the situation got desperate enough, Robb was positive there would be a few out there willing to martyr themselves to their packs’ cause. It has happened before.

Still, while others had begun to forget the fire, Robb hadn’t. He hadn’t told Jon about his conversation with Theon that night, especially not the part about the fire and Jon being connected in some way. While he initially shrugged it off, it was nagging at him. The same way that when Theon showed up, there were suddenly killings. Something was up and it wasn’t letting Robb go. However, there wasn’t much he could do without crossing some major lines.

He was already going against the pack by not divulging the information he had. He should tell them about Theon, but by doing so would he would have to admit the whole truth and he couldn’t do that. That would only make matters work and Robb was still trying to figure out _what exactly_ was going on between them.

He knew, deep down, he already had staked a possessive mark on Theon. It wasn’t physical; he knew it was all in his head. He wanted to say that logic is what kept him from keeping all this information from his pack, but he knew deep down it was the idea of Theon being _his_ secret that made him keep his mouth shut. Logic only backed up instinct.

It was the second day after the fire that Theon finally called. Actually, it wasn’t even daylight yet, Theon calling at the dim hour of four in the morning.

 _“Want to meet?”_ Theon chipper voice greeted Robb’s groggy and sleep-ladened hello.

“Now?” Robb spoke quietly. Most of his family slept like a stone, but he didn’t need Rickon waking up and questioning why someone wanted to meet him so early in the morning. _Fuck, enhanced hearing._ Even Jon was stirring on the other side of the room from Robb’s low volume.

 _“Oh, I thought you were so eager to meet again,”_ Theon sneered playfully over the phone. He sounded light and airy, despite the hour. He was in far too good a mood for the atmosphere hanging around the town. It would have been off-putting if Robb’s brain was able to catch up.

“Just text me the address of where you are and I’ll be there.”

 _“Knew you couldn’t resist me,”_ Theon purred.

Robb was about to make a snappish remark back when a giggle erupted on the other end, high pitched and feminine and _definitely_ not Theon. Ugly jealousy clawed at Robb’s chest, taking him completely by surprise, causing his words to come to a jarring halt, Robb practically choking on them.

“I’ll be there in a bit,” Robb bit out, trying to keep his voice neutral but very much failing.

Theon seemed to hear the difference in tone. _“Right…remember to be discrete.”_

Robb grunted and hung up, tossing his phone a little harder than strictly necessary at the other end of the bed. Jon was still sleeping, thankfully, but the heat that filled the room because of him was only making Robb more agitated. Usually, it was a comfort, but the constricting feeling in Robb’s chest ( _jealousy,_ his brain kept supplying) was making it hard to breathe.

Changing quickly and trying to rationalize the situation, Robb almost missed the text coming in from Theon with the address of a motel on the other side of town. With an address in mind and the car keys in hand, Robb left Jon a hastily-written note explaining in vague terms where he was. With that, he was gone.

* * *

The drive to the motel was quick. The town was still sleeping this early in the morning and there was no traffic. The motel itself was a bright beacon in the early morning darkness, the sign flashing its large number of vacancies as well as its cheap pricing. There were a few cars parked on the lot, all of which were beaten up and weathered. Robb wondered if any belonged to Theon. A dark thought wondered if any belonged to the girl in his room. Jealousy made another harsh swipe within his chest, squeezing his lungs for a moment.

Checking the text for the room number, Robb quickly climbed to the second floor of the motel and knocked hard on the door. His ears could pick up not one, but _two_ high pitched squeals and a suggestive shush. This was then followed by the soft padding of feet coming to the door. Robb backed up a step as the chain lock was removed and the deadbolt was turned. Theon appeared in the crack, smirking at Robb like he knew something Robb didn’t. Robb hoped that bubbling rage ( _jealous, jealous, jealous_ ) in his chest wasn’t showing through on his face.

“That was quick,” Theon smirked before turning to look back into the room. “Alright, girls, time to go.”

Robb tried to mask his irritation as the two girls came to view. Both of them skimpily dressed, only wearing half of their clothing and carrying the rest in their thin arms. Their hair was tousled and their lips were swollen and it didn’t take a genius to know what had been going on in that room. Less so for Robb who could smell _everything_.

Theon looked exceptionally pleased with himself as he opened the door wider for Robb to come in. The smell was only stronger inside and was now being aided by the visuals of the messy bed and dimmed down lights. One of the girls seemed to have left her panties hanging from the bathroom door knob.

Robb heard the door close softly and the deadbolt being locked back into place. He barely even realized what he was doing before it was too late and he had Theon pressed up against the door, pinned and their lips locked together.

Theon didn’t even fight him off which only made Robb push further against him and bite down on his lips to get Theon to open his mouth wider. Actually, Theon pulled him closer, one arm wrapped tightly around Robb’s neck and the other yanking on the front of his shirt. It was when Robb’s tongue was basically down Theon’s throat that Robb came roaring back to his sense and jerked away until he was halfway on the other side of the room, panting and wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

Of course, the first thing Theon said once his own breath came back was, “You don’t wear jealousy well.”

Robb threw him a look of pure discontent but Theon rolled off, brushing past him to sit on the bed. He grinned up at Robb, damn near giddy.

“I’m not jealous,” Robb defended weakly.

Theon huffed a laugh but didn’t dispute him. Instead, he explained, “I was feeding on them.”

That gave Robb pause. He couldn’t smell the stench of blood over the smell of sex in the room but maybe that was the point. They didn’t seem pale or weakened, he didn’t even see any marks on their necks and-

“People taste better when they were running on endorphins,” Theon continued with a casual shrug. “Orgasms work pretty well. The heart is pumping, they are lost in pleasure, one little bite to the wrist and they barely even feel it, let alone notice it.”

Robb’s eyebrows furrowed. “Wrist?”

“I think we can both agree the neck is a bit _intimate_ , hmm?” Theon triggering the memory from the dive bar’s bathroom.

Coughing and fighting the emerging memories, Robb asked, “Both of them?” He was still standing awkwardly in the middle of the room but not wanted to cross the distance to the bed. It felt too forward and implicit, especially when this was a fact finding mission and they were already off to a rocky start.

Something shined in Theon’s eyes as he spoke once again, “Less of an effect on them if they split the effects and over the course of two days-”

“You kept them here for two days?” Robb balked.

“Picked them up right after our little chat,” Theon tilted his head to the side. “They weren’t complaining. They never do.”

Right, Robb had nearly forgotten vampires’ keen ability to lure people in with words alone. Even Robb could feel himself fall under the charm and it was harder for a vampire to use it on non-normals.

“Right,” the bubbling in his chest hadn’t diminished completely but it had come down a bit. Robb didn’t want to think too hard as to why it had even struck up, to begin with. Instead, he moved onto the reason he was actual here. “You were going to tell me about your stalker.”

Just like that, the temperature of the room seemed to drop and the high that Theon had been riding vanished as a dark shadow came across his face and his shoulders tensed.

“You might want to sit.” His voice was distant and withdrawn, the playful purr gone with the smirk.

The only option for a seat that wasn’t the bed was a mysteriously stained rolling chair that Robb dragged so he could sit right in front of Theon. He didn’t give too much thought to the fact that their knees were grazing each other every now and then and tried to give even less thought to the fact that Theon didn’t pull his legs away.

Theon didn’t meet Robb’s gaze, his eyes focused lower like he found the blue shirt Robb was wearing _super_ interesting and important. Like it held answers or it would swallow him up. Robb didn’t say anything as he waited for Theon to speak, not wanted to push him any further than this conversation might already be.

“She’s not a stalker, for one,” Theon clarified in a low voice. “She’s my sister.”

Robb’s eyebrows rose. “Your sister?” Just that factoid opened up a thousand for questions because if Theon’s sister was looking for him, that means Theon was recently deceased, well, in terms of a vampire’s eternal life span.

“I’ve only been like this,” he waved a hand down his body as an explanation, “for a couple of years.”

“What were you before?” Robb blurted out before he could help himself.

It was _rare_ for a normal human being to be turned into a vampire. Humans were extremely delicate beings and their bodies didn’t take to change well. Non-normals were much easier candidates for vampiristic tendencies. Most non-normals already were in a constant state of change. Robb, for example, went through a painful transformation every full moon and, on occasion, nights in between. The odds of Theon being an average human in his past life was slim.

Theon’s eyes danced as he cocked his head to the side. “Want to guess?”

Robb swallowed. There was really no way of his guessing. The vampire part overwhelmed all of one’s past life. Robb had heard rumors of werewolves who were turned, their ability to shift during full moons had been completely ripped away from them but their minds still shifted, leaving them in half-beast states until the moon passed. Robb was willing to wager the rest was the same for other non-normals, although he wasn’t sure.

“Werewolf,” Robb threw out but judging by Theon’s wrinkling nose, he was off the mark. Robb already knew that to be the case.

“Think less land-based,” Theon held a secretive smile as he spoke. “I’ll give you three tries to guess.”

“And if I win?” Robb inquired with annoyance coloring his tone but his body language told a _completely_ different story. Theon seemed to read it well.

“We can continue where we left off before,” Theon murmured with a deepening smirk. Robb immediately went red and tried to reel through appropriate comebacks, half stuttering already but Theon was quick to silence him. “Start guessing, I can’t imagine you’ll be staying here all day.”

Robb snapped his mouth shut and tried to reel his mind over different non-normals. Theon wasn’t a dragon, there were few left and Robb was familiar with who they were because of his cousin. However, his other cousin… “Griffin?”

Amusement crossed Theon’s face as he bit back a laugh, “Wrong element. Do I look like I belong in the mountains?”

Robb bit back his response. Obviously, Theon had no idea that the powerhouses that used to be griffins didn’t really exist anymore, not when Sweetrobin was going to be the head of a whole flock one day. Gods help them all.

Well, since land and air were out, that left water. “Mermaid,” he offered but quickly changed to “merman.” Robb could see it. His mother had mermaid in her, although the Tully line had crossed with naiads at some point and the tails were long forgotten.

Theon’s face pulled into a deep frown. “No.” He seemed almost _offended_.

At a loss for an answer, Robb just threw out, “Gorgons.”

The smile slowly came back to Theon’s face. “You were closer with damn mermaids and mermen.”

“Well, that was three,” Robb sighed, his curiosity nagging at him enough that he only _barely_ noticed the sink in his stomach in realizing that he lost their little game and the reward and wasn’t that just the most twisted thing? He barely knew the guy and he already had it bad for him, worse than even some _mated pairs_.

“You’re right,” Theon rolled his shoulders. “Selkie, you were close enough but merfolk don’t really exist that much anymore.”

Robb stared. _Selkie, huh?_ Robb remembered his father talking about a clan of them living in the coastal cities, where they could have one foot in sea and one on shore. He also heard that they used to be a strong clan but had diminished greatly over the years. Perhaps the reason for that was also right in front of him.

“I’ve never met one before,” Robb admitted. He had been fortunate enough, through his father’s connections, to meet any different types of non-normals hiding in plain sight. Selkies though had never made the list.

“Can’t imagine, we don’t often stray so far from the sea,” Theon broke off into that distance voice again as his eyes drifted down to their currently connected knees.

“So what happened,” Robb asked carefully, his eyes trying to meet Theon’s.

He gave a low slump of his shoulder. “’Trusted the wrong person.”

“You didn’t know he was a vampire?”

Theon lifted his face to lock eyes with Robb. “He wasn’t. Selkies don’t have a great sense of smell, our eyesight is superior, though. I don’t know what he was, but he had a pulse.”

“Then how did you-”

“He had a collection.” Theon clenched his fists. “Out in the woods he had this…this barn. It’s filled with cages that held people trapped in them.”

Robb’s stomached rolled at the thought. “Like prisoners?”

“No,” Theon said lightly although his tone was off. “With prisoners, there is the implied notion that they had done something wrong and they deserved their capture. We… _they_ didn’t. As far as I knew.”

“You didn’t talk to them?” Robb asked quickly but shrank back at his eagerness. He wanted to know it all but Theon seemed slow on the release of information like he was testing the waters with his story.

“I wasn’t kept in the barn until my last few days.”

 _What the hell did that even mean?_ Robb’s stomach seized up again as a sick feeling washed over him. “I-”

“He had a vampire in one of the cages, the old kind. So old that his mind was gone and he was all beast,” Theon cut Robb off. Suddenly, it was like the floodgates had opened and it all came spilling out. “He only put me in there to teach me a lesson, a correction. I had to learn. I was wrong and I had to be punished and to learn and-” Theon cut himself off rapidly, took a deep breath and started back up again, slower this time. “Apparently, the vampire he had in there had been working the locks for a while now and was waiting for fresh meat to come along. I don’t think I need to explain the rest.”

Robb was still trying to digest what the fuck Theon just rambled off about but he decided it was safer to take the other route of conversation. “So maybe that other vampire is the one out there, killing-”

“No.”

“No?” Robb repeated slowly.

“He’s gone now. Stake through the heart. Really, the reason I became what I am instead of a victim. He didn’t get to finish what he started.” Slowly and with trembling hands, Theon lifted the front of his shirt. Robb’s eyes locked onto the first sign of skin but as more was revealed, a chill crept up and claimed Robb.

There was a medley of scars ranging from thin cuts that looked like slices and nicks to entire patches where the skin had been peeled off. There even seemed to be a small chunk missing from the area by his hip bone. Bite marks are what caught Robb’s attention next. Those were nearly as frequent as the cuts, ranging from little nibbles to massive bites. However, that all went out of mind as Theon brought his shirt to his chest to reveal a gnarl of twisted and poorly healed skin. Robb couldn’t even look at it long, turning away after staring at it for a few moments. It looked as if a wild animal had mauled him with the intent of digging in until he ripped out Theon’s heart. Robb thought he was going to be sick as he realized _that’s exactly what fucking happened._

Robb heard rather than saw Theon lower his shirt back down. He turned his head to see Theon was leaning back on the bed, his arms bracing him as he looked up at the popcorn ceiling that was turning a faint yellow color.

The silence was palpable and uncomfortable at best. Robb wasn’t sure what to say, _if_ he should say anything. Theon’s face was vacant of an expression and Robb wasn’t sure what was going through his mind but they had to move past this silence. They had to if they wanted to move forward.

“Your sister, she’s looking for you?” Robb spoke quietly, hesitantly, his eyes locked on Theon’s hand tightening on the tangled sheets on the bed.

“I escaped shortly after my transformation and she had been looking for me at the time. Asha’s a skilled tracker and once she found out I was still here,” Robb noticed his avoidance of the word ‘alive’, “she hasn’t given up on searching for me. Every time I lose her, she picks up the trail a few weeks later.”

“Why are you avoiding her?” Robb asked but Theon shot him a look of _are you fucking kidding me?_

“What am I supposed to say?” Theon snapped lowly. “I can’t go back.”

“You could just tell her that,” Robb offered carefully, although he wasn’t exactly sure why Theon couldn’t go back to his family. He actually wasn’t even sure why he left.

Theon gave off a hollow laugh. “You don’t know her, but she isn’t exactly one to take no for an answer.” Robb couldn’t help but think of Arya.

A moment passed between them. It was no longer awkward, but more assessing. It gave each of them a moment to absorb and think about what was just discussed.

“So you really don’t know who is killing people,” Robb gave a dejected sigh.

“Or who started the fire,” Theon added, his eyes now looking toward the covered window. It was pinned to the walls so sunlight couldn’t come in but it still lit up with a faint glow as the sun begun to rise.

“And it isn’t your sister?” Robb joked lightly, hoping that they could reach that playful energy again, although it wasn’t looking too hopeful.

Theon glanced over at Robb. “No, not Asha’s style.” Robb almost asked what _was_ Asha’s style when Theon spoke up again. “Maybe it is someone in your pack.”

Robb was about to defend his pack viciously. There was no was in _hell_ his siblings were capable of doing anything like that and his pack was entirely based in Winterfell but the killings were spread throughout the north. All in towns that contained packs-

“Oh, shit.”

Theon jerked his head up with a confused expression. “What?”

“I think you’re right,” Robb murmured in disbelief. He didn’t know for sure, but it couldn’t be a coincidence that all these killings were done in towns where packs were. It wasn’t as if every town had a pack there, yet every town that was hit had packs. As far as they knew. “I need you to make me a list.”

Theon still looked confused. “Of?”

“Every town you’ve visited.  I’ll get you a map,” Robb’s mind was already running through hundreds of scenarios. “I need you to mark what town you were in and how long you were there for. Estimate if you can’t remember exactly. Then we’ll see if killings happened there. You might not be involved at all, it might just be a coincidence.” Before Theon could speak, Robb continued, “Although I doubt that. However, if it is just pack towns, then it has to be someone who knows there are packs there and some of these pack towns aren’t very big. No one but other packs would know and-”

“One of your own could be behind it,” Theon finished.

“And framing you,” Robb added, standing up and reaching for his phone. He needed to call Jon and get him involved, especially if he was right.

“They could be framing your cousin too,” Theon drawled, standing up as well. “The dragon boy.”

“Maybe,” Robb conceded but he hoped that wasn’t the case. Opening up his phone, Robb could see a six missed calls from Jon and the time read nine in the morning. How the time went by so quickly, Robb wasn’t sure but he knew it had to do with this draw he had to Theon and he was going to have to be more conscious about it. “I’ll come back later.”

“If it is at night I can meet you,” Theon cocked his head curiously, oddly calm after the past being dragged up as it was.

“No,” Robb abandoned his phone and clapped both hands on Theon’s shoulders. “You should stay here where no one will see you. We don’t know who else is out there following you besides your sister.”

Theon didn’t look pleased by that development but he shrugged. Robb realized he had kept his hands on Theon’s shoulders a few seconds too long and ripped them away quickly. Theon noticed this and smirked.

“You didn’t win,” he reminded Robb who only grew red.

“That was never my goal,” Robb said.

Theon narrowed his eyes inquisitively. “What? Didn’t want to? You seemed so eager earlier.”

 _How_ Theon could switch from playful to serious to helpful to seductive so seamlessly made Robb both dizzy and aroused. “Wha-”

Cool lips touched Robb’s quickly but before he could even react, Theon moved to stand behind the door. “Best be going.”

With burning cheeks, Robb nodded a goodbye to Theon and ducked out of the motel, careful to open the door as minimally as possible to avoid too much sunlight coming into the room. Once the door was safely closed, Robb could faintly hear Theon chuckling.

Grabbing his phone from his pocket once more, Robb began his descent down the stairs, dialing Jon’s number.

 _“Please tell me you were with him,”_ Jon spoke immediately, his voice on the edge of nervous and worried.

“Why?” Robb blinked in confusion, his eyebrows pinching together.

_“There’s been another murder and…fuck, Robb-”_

His stomach dropped, the worst case scenarios running through Robb’s mind. _Please don’t let it be mother or father, Bran or Rickon, Sansa or Arya-_

_“-it was Rodrik Cassel.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading and bearing with long gaps between updates. Hopefully things will get better, but no promises. My final semester of Uni starts up next Wednesday so my time might be limited for writing...if you think I've forgotten this story, I haven't. I've already begun outlining and writing the next chapter! My goal is next week. 
> 
> Feel free to yell at me on [Tumblr](http://youbuggingme.tumblr.com/) either way! Love you! <3

**Author's Note:**

> Come say 'hi' on [Tumblr](http://youbuggingme.tumblr.com/)


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